Soft spot in floor - 2015 Crusader

OnyxSky · 11-10-2015, 06:17 PM

So I am in a spot and need to decide what to do, took my 2015 321RES for service due to a soft spot approx. 14" x 14" located between the kitchen island and hutch. When we bought it the floor was not like it is today, now you can visually see a deflection in the floor every time you walk on it as well as getting that sinking feeling.

Dealer has told me that FR has denied the claim stating there is a galley tank under that area and they can reinforce or fix the issue. To me this throws a few flags as 1 it wasn't like that when we bought it, I would have never purchased it if it was. 2 the area where it's soft is completely out of where logic would indicate this tank should be as it's closer to curb side than street side and more than a foot outside of where the island sits.

My feeling right now is that I bought wrong, even the dealer has indicated as such as they have now dropped the Crusader line in favor of another vendor. Surprise that didn't come up when I bought it 7 months ago that they were being discontinued, that leaves no Crusader dealers in Minnesota.

My first thought is to fight this and either use a scope and check through the panel to see where this tank is really located, or to drop the whole belly pan which its now winter and I don't have a garage capable of doing the work myself.

My second thought is to just deal with it as the wife wants and hope it doesn't get worse when we go to sell it in a few years. I personally wouldn't buy a trailer with that issue.

My third option is to cut my loses and trade it back to the dealer now, they offered around 36k, I paid 42k in Feb for it and owe 38k on it. But that means taking out a higher loan as a result from the loss plus the difference in cost in units.

Hope some suggestions from the forum might help to heed me direction.

**Platokidd** · 11-10-2015, 09:24 PM

You could carefully cut an access in the corrugated plastic underbelly to have a look. Be careful stuff could be just laying on top of the plastic belly. (wires / ducking) Dont ask me how I know

You can always attach more underbelly material with screws and / or underbelly tape.
Think you may have 2 cut out spots like that in the underbelly material now for access to your slide motors.

MrNiceGuy · 11-11-2015, 05:54 AM

I would contact Prime Time directly. They do stand behind their products as I know from personal experience.

Mr Havercamp · 11-11-2015, 07:57 AM

Is this spot an area that gets a lot of use like a spot where someone stands a lot, such as in front of the sink?

What I have seen in trailers with the laminated floors is these spots develop where the floor gets lots of traffic. Hallways, in front of entry doors, in front of sinks etc. The floor is just a framework of aluminum tube with Styrofoam in the middle, the same as the laminated wall. Plywood is glued to top and bottom and the plywood is not all that thick. Usually 1/8" on the bottom and 3/16" or 1/4" on the top. Depending on how far apart they place the aluminum tubes and the frame cross members below, you get movement in the whole assembly. The more it moves the more the glue bond starts to work loose. The more the glue works loose the more it moves, and then the foam starts getting compressed. Its a type of delamination. The only sure way to repair it is to cut into it underneath and remove the foam, then replace that with something solid such as wood. That creates other problems like lack of insulation etc. You can also get an inject-able epoxy, which can be pumped into the area but results are not consistent. The issue is there is no good or easy way to fix it which is why dealers and manufacturers typically want to run away from it. Some manufacturers typically try and use the clause in the warranty that states its not built for "full time use" to to skate around the issue and say you used it too much.

Cutting into the underbelly is a scary thought. Like Plato says you do not know what your going to find in there. Typically its the dump for every piece of scrap the made while building the trailer.

Hopefully you get Primetime to address it. Good luck

xleme93 · 11-11-2015, 01:36 PM

Try contacting RKoelndorfer@forestriverinc.com ,I had a few issues with my 2014 Crusader 324RES, he was very helpful when I was still under warranty and when I had a problem with my Legend TV out of warranty he assisted me in getting it replaced free of charge except for return shipping of the old unit. I found the folks at Primetime very easy to deal with and quite helpful. Good Luck.

Stormrider151 · 11-11-2015, 02:48 PM

I have an inspection camera for things like this. You can drill a small hole and run the camera in and have a look. Mine has a light on it that helps a lot. It wasn't that expensive and I find I use it quite often.

BusyRetirees · 11-11-2015, 07:28 PM

We had the same problem but it was in front of our fireplace which is in a slide. The cause was that the plywood used was not tongue and groove. They went underneath, put a piece of metal and 2x4 to reinforce the seam. Worked. No more sag and FR did it under warranty. Keep pushing and don't take any lame excuses from dealer. Tell them you want everything in writing. When they have to put it on paper, they soon sing a different tune.

**Platokidd** · 11-11-2015, 07:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Silverado2500HD

I would contact Prime Time directly. They do stand behind their products as I know from personal experience.

X2! Found I got much better results working with PT and my dealer.

OnyxSky · 11-11-2015, 08:59 PM

I used the email provided in the tread earlier and sent off an email, we'll see if that goes anywhere, downside is the dealer wants me to pick it up due to limited space on their shop lot, only place I have to store it in the winter will make it exceedingly difficult to move once the snow hits.

OnyxSky · 11-12-2015, 02:48 PM

Well the email off to Rick certainly worked, after checking with him he said he didn't even see that a claim had been submitted. When I asked my dealer for a copy of the denial letter, there was not one to be found. After providing the information to Rick, suddenly there was a claim open for review and possible fix. I saw "possible" fix as my dealer still hasn't responded back to me to let me know how they are going to repair the issue. But a definite thanks to Rick for getting my dealer to actually take action on it.

trbomax · 11-12-2015, 03:06 PM

This sounds like a "back to the factory thing". We have a soft spot that squeeks too,among other structural issues.Dealer reviewed the whole package of repairs and determined "it was not repairable at the dealer level". He (dealer) made arrangements for it to be returned to Goshen in feb. The only downside is that I have to take it there and pick it up,but thats OK,I get to talk to the people doing it,and then personally inspect it before I bring it back.

Fred H. · 11-14-2015, 08:27 AM

If I would need any type of repairs like this I would prefer to take my Crusader to the factory. A small price to pay to take it to them than to have a dealer try to repair by hacking up the job.

portliz · 12-19-2015, 07:29 PM

We had this issue with our Crusader. After contacting RV guy we had it repaired at Recreational Specialists. Even though it was out of warranty.

We had discovered that there was a tank under the floor in front of the sink. 36 inches that had no supports. Who builds a rig like that????

They said that the floor delaminated. Repair held for 6 months and then got worse - much worse and bigger. We traded it with full disclosure to the dealer. He didn't seem concerned but has mentioned later that he is having a hell of time trying to fix it.

Prime Time stepped up once but refused to when it got worse. Second repair would have been $3000 +.

Not thrilled with our experience. Glad we traded.

OnyxSky · 12-19-2015, 07:39 PM

After much back and forth between the dealer telling me the claim was denied to Primetime telling me they never had a claim, eventually it got sorted out and a month later I got our rig back. From my understanding it was the same issue where the tank is. The dealer told me they dropped the tank, and put it a steel lattice with steel cross members in that area. Then recounted and reinstalled the tank and ran new plumbing. Floor feels solid in that area now. Dealer said that primetime was going to recommend a similar fix from what the dealer came up with for other customers having the issue. I don't want to lose my shorts too much on resale from a manufacturers design flaw.

What did you trade to?

portliz · 12-20-2015, 07:57 PM

We bought a used Bighorn. Almost the same layout as our Crusader but definitely a step up in quality. The dealer gave us a one year all inclusive warranty. We have camped several times since our purchase. Leaving for 3 months in florida mid Jan.

Sounds like your dealer has made a good fix. Ours held at first and then got worse. Every time we stepped on it I felt sick. You may be fine but keep an eye on it.

We are happy we traded.

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